Free
by Scotch-Irish Rose
Summary: Queen Elinor's lifestyle after becoming human again.


Free_  
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_A brief look at Elinor's life after the curse is lifted.  
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**A/N: Just a short, sweet one-shot. **

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Weeks had passed since the beastly curse that had plagued the queen occurred. As the days went by, things had slowly returned to normal, though the royal family had accepted the fact that nothing would ever be quite the same again. The beloved queen took her place on the throne again, though she was still left without her precious, jeweled coronet, without which she felt as though she wasn't completely in power. She did receive a great amount of satisfaction when she reminded herself that she, Elinor of DunBroch, was the queen.

Occasionally, she would partake in leaving her chestnut tresses down, wistfully gazing at the top of her head, squinting her amber eyes as she attempted to somehow use a telepathic force to return the crown sporting the shining emerald to her cranium. She reminded herself daily to ask of her husband to send his men out to hunt for the heirloom, though she never did get around to it. Secretly, she knew in her heart that the missing crown and braids represented freedom, a freedom which she hadn't experienced for years.

King Fergus, with whom the queen had restored much more than simply a platonic relationship, badgered her constantly about how remorseful he was over the fact that he had nearly slayed her, and though she had repeatedly accepted his apology and asked for him to move on to more important matters, he continued to oblige to her every whim, no matter how miniscule or pedantic, and worship the ground she walked on for countless days after.

The triplets were quickly back to their usual behavior, causing ruckuses left and right at any time of day or night, resulting in a severe admonishing from their mother and a stammering from their father while he desperately tried to give his boys an explanation as to why they were in trouble. After Elinor rebuked her sons, she would nearly chortle at how outrageously ridiculous her scoldings were. Her sons paid no mind to anyone, with the exception being Merida, of course, and even then the princess had a difficult time in swaying their opinions of anything, so what was the use? She was just wasting her breath.

Much to Elinor's joy, friendly relations had been restored between the queen and princess. After much pestering from her daughter, Elinor finally agreed to get back on a horse again. Merida mounted quickly, while Elinor took a deep breath and carefully slid into the saddle. It had been years since she'd ridden a horse. In fact, she couldn't remember when she'd ridden last. It may very well have been the day of the picnic, which led Elinor to believe that she may have developed a subconcious fear of riding after associating her daughter in peril and her husband's near-death experience with the galloping hooves of her Clydesdale. Though she would often take time to visit her muscular stallion in the stables, feeding him the occasional apple and rubbing his velvet muzzle gently, she hadn't ridden him for what had seemed like decades. Now, as she bounced in the saddle, the wind flowing through her hair, she felt a sense of liberation.

As she slowly came to a halt next to her daughter, their horses' manes whipping in the sea breeze, she beheld a magnificent sight. The afternoon sun cast bright rays upon the clear, glistening water, creating a picturesque sight. Never in her thirty-five years of life had she witnessed such a beautiful scene, and she felt disappointment as she suddenly came to the realization that she'd been missing so much in the past years.

"'Tis gorgeous, don't ye agree?" Merida whispered, and the queen barely made out what her daughter had uttered, as the salty, sea breeze nearly made her voice inaudible.

"'Tisn't the right word to describe it, m'dear." Elinor breathed, placing a hand upon her chest.

Merida cracked a smile before suddenly snapping her reins while lightly kicking Angus's sides with her heels, and the horse bolted off, down the grassy knoll on which he had been standing. Elinor drew in a short gasp and encouraged her horse to pursue the duo. Angus swerved on to a narrow forest path, and Elinor hesitated. The path appeared to be somewhat dangerous, but she continued after her daughter nonetheless. Elinor flinched slightly as twigs and branches snapped beneath her stallion's shoed hooves.

She was relieved when she finally reached the end of the path, and was surprised at what awaited her. This path had led to the river where she had fished with Merida while she was cursed. Merida dismounted and allowed a parched Angus to gulp down the brisk, clear water, and Elinor followed her daughter's example.

The queen spotted something shiny on a nearby boulder, and quickly scampered over to retrieve it. She clutched the object in her hands as she dusted it off, all the while gazing at it fervently. The green emerald gemstone glimmered in the sunlight. Elinor was liberated from her trance when she felt a hand upon her shoulder, which belonged to Merida.

"Go ahead, Mum," she encouraged, shooting her mother a toothy grin. "It's yer crown." Elinor continued to hesitate, proceeding to place it back upon the rock. Merida's face twisted up in confusion, and Elinor released a slight laugh.

The queen felt as though she didn't need it anymore. Not long before, her crown was a necessity. It had to be constantly placed upon her head in order for her to feel she possessed worth, but that was no longer the case. She had a loving husband, darling triplet boys, and a wonderful daughter who never ceased to amaze her. She was truly complete.

"I have no use for it at the moment." Elinor confessed, smiling profusely. Merida returned her smile, and the queen's heart soared.


End file.
